Jackson Twenty-One will go on without Mitch Leigh

Jackson Twenty-One developer Mitch Leigh walks to the podium to speak to the Jackson Chamber of Commerce in this March 2013 file photo. Leigh’s death Sunday at 86 will not stop Jackson Twenty-One, said Tom Bovino, manager of Leigh Realty Co. in Brick, who oversees the project.
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“There’s always been a succession plan in place, and it’ll be seamless because there’s no new faces or people,” said Tom Bovino, manager of Leigh Realty Co. in Brick, who oversees the project. “We’re not slowing down at all. If anything, we’re more motivated and dedicated than ever.”

Leigh, the composer of the famed Broadway musical “Man of La Mancha,” aspired to build a mixed commercial and residential development similar to Long Branch’s Pier Village on the land in the township that he bought more than 25 years ago. However, a number of setbacks delayed his vision. He died Sunday at 86.

“He was the heart and soul of the project,” Bovino said. “He kind of put his money where his mouth was. At a late point in his life, he was willing to double down and put his name, his face, his music behind the notion of his dream to try to convince others to become a part of it.”

The Gardens at Jackson Twenty-One — the first phase of the project — calls for 510 one- and two-bedroom residential apartments, which could cost as much as an estimated $61 million. Once completely finished, the entire development could cost in the hundreds of millions of dollars, he said.

Leigh owned the land for so long that he had paid off its debt by the time he died. Meanwhile, his real estate company continues to finance the necessary approvals and improvements as they come, Bovino said. As developers buy the land, part of their money will go toward reinvesting in future portions of the development, he said.